Argentine Foreign Minister at 48th Regular Session of the OAS General Assembly
Today, Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie participated in the first plenary session of the 48th Regular Session of the OAS General Assembly held in Washington, at which he called for the application of the Inter-American Democratic Charter in view of the Venezuelan crisis.
In his address delivered before the Foreign Ministers of the continent, Faurie stressed that the crisis in Venezuela amounts to a "threat to regional stability and security" and that "the countries of the region cannot ignore the suffering of a sister nation and must redouble efforts to tackle this dramatic situation."
"The OAS must address the serious crisis facing Venezuela, which is both a political-institutional crisis and a humanitarian crisis," the Argentine Foreign Minister stated and added that "when faced with the rupture of democratic order, the OAS has a clear instrument: the Inter-American Democratic Charter."
"We must stand for democracy and respect for human rights in Venezuela by applying the OAS Charter and the Inter-American Democratic Charter and strengthening the Inter-American human rights protection system," the Argentine Foreign Minister stated at the session of the Assembly, chaired on this occasion by the Foreign Minister of Paraguay, Eladio Loizaga.
"The prestige and importance of the OAS are at stake depending on the actions the Organization takes regarding this issue," Faurie stated and underscored the importance of the Permanent Council's resolution of 23 February urging Nicolás Maduro's regime to accept international assistance as a first step in the right direction. He also stressed that this is an opportunity "to reaffirm the regional role of the organization in defending and promoting democracy, human rights, security and development - its four foundational pillars."
Faurie noted that Argentina, like other countries, does not recognize the legitimacy of the electoral process held in Venezuela on 20 May and its outcome, as it did not meet minimum freedom and transparency standards.
"The humanitarian crisis in Venezuela has worsened and deepened to an alarming extent, resulting in the growing displacement of Venezuelans: over 900,000 Venezuelans have migrated to various countries of the region between 2015 and 2017," Faurie highlighted, adding that such situation poses a risk to regional security "in health, epidemiology, migration, food, social and education aspects."
Faurie also referred to the crisis that arose in Nicaragua and condemned "the repression of citizens who are demonstrating peacefully", in addition to expressing his "deep concern" over the increasing number of deaths, especially of youths.
"We hope that National Dialogue in Nicaragua can be continued and that all sides remain firmly and unequivocally committed to strengthening peace and putting an end to violence, intolerance, intimidation, arbitrariness and persecution, which only make the crisis worsen and that is exactly what we all want to avoid now," Faurie stated.
In addition, the Minister ratified the commitment to "the positive agenda of the OAS" and, in that vein, "to humanitarian assistance, disaster risk reduction and resilience building in the region to face climate disasters," highlighting the role of the "White Helmets" Argentine initiative.
"Argentina has a long track record of South-South and Triangular Cooperation since the creation of the Argentine Fund for South-South and Triangular Cooperation (FO-AR) 25 years ago. Since then, the Fund has mainly carried out its work in the region, channelling the main initiatives implemented or under development in a wide range of areas, such as agro-industry, science and technology, health, education, security, justice and human rights," he stated.
Faurie also dedicated some words to Guatemala and conveyed his condolences over the eruption of the Fuego volcano, which has left 25 dead and hundreds injured and evacuated.
Press release No. 238/18
